Drying attachment for hair dryer



Nov. 7, '1967 5. .J. CATANIA 3,350,791

DRYING ATTACHMENT FOR HAIR DRYER Filed April 14, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I 7 A-s 42 34 B Salvatore J. Cafania IN VENTOR,

Nov. 7, 1967 5. J. CATANIA DRYING ATTACHMENT FOR HAIR DRYER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTUR.

Salvo/ore J. Caram'a Filed April 14, 1965 United States Patent Ofiice 3,55%,791 Patented Nov. 7, 1967 3,350,791 DRYING ATTACHMENT FUR HAIR DRYER Salvatore J. Catania, 2531 S. 90th St, Omaha, Nebr. 68134 Filed Apr. 14, 1965, Ser. No. 448,165 Claims. (Cl. 34-90) This invention relates to novel means which when correctly'installed across the open end or mouth portion of a hollow domical or an equivalent hair drying hood temporarily converts the hollow chamber portion into a feasible holder and dryer for beauty parlor brushes, combs and commonly used implements and accessories.

Persons who are conversant with the art to which this invention relates are well aware that hood attachments which utilize the hoods head space or chamber for comb and brush holding and drying purposes are old, US. Patent 2,846,777, for one typical example. The fact that prior art converter attachments have not, or so it would seem, met with widespread adoption and use, has motivated the herein disclosed effort to resort to a different approach; namely, attachment means (two embodiments) which has been found to be a better solution of the overall problem.

Briefly, and to the end results desired, the present invention relies for novelty on a simple efiicient guard which spans the mouth of the heated air chamber and is thin and fiat and defines a partial cover or closure. The construction is such that only the lower half-portion of the open end is blocked. Accordingly, the upper half-portion remains unobstructedly open and permits free access and unhampered loading and unloading of the portion of chamber in which the insertable and removable articles are trapped for drying.

. In carrying out the present invention each attachment is not only expressly designed and well adapted to its primary closure=forming-purpose, it is simple in construction, light in weight, easy to apply and remove and is made of material which is strong and durable and can be effectually washed,'cleaned and, what is significantly important, can be placedzin the usual sterilizer and thereafter used repeatedly and with reliable results.

The simplest form of the invention comprises a rectangular or otherwise suitably shaped cloth panel provided at its ends with flexible straps providing a readily applicable and removable attaching and retaining harness.

The other form or modification comprises a length of wire which is bent upon itself between its ends and fashioned into an openwork frame-within-a-frame guard. The main frame embodies bendable loop-like end portions linked together in coplanar relationship. The companion or auxiliary frame is coordinated within the encompassing confines of the outer or main frame and the resilient end portions are fashioned into prong-like attaching and retaining fingers, the latter being slidingly and yieldingly oriented on a straight part of the main frame and having the capability of being plugged into existing air ports in the inner wall or liner of the hood in a manner to removably anchor the guard.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective showing a conventionaltype domical or correspondingly shaped hair drying hood with the guard-type attachment in place and converting the chamber or space into a holder for combs, brushes and the like.

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the attachment by itself.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view in section and elevation showing one of the features of the attachment and how it is used.

FIG. 4 is a view in perspective, like FIG. 1, but showing a modified form of the attachment and how it is applied and used.

FIG. 5 is a view on an enlarged scale showing this embodiment of the attachment and how it is constructed.

Referring first to FIGURES 1 to 3 inclusive and with reference first to FIGURE 1 it will be seen that the numeral 6 designates a chair of the type used in a beauty parlor or an equivalent hair-styling establishment, the same provided with a standard or support 8 for the hingedly attached component 10 which supports the raisable and lowerable hair drying hood 12. This particular hood comprises (FIGURE 3) an outer imperforate wall or shell 14 and an inner wall or liner 16, the latter provided with a multiplicity of air passing and circulating orifices or ports 18 communicating with the hollow space or chamber. The rim or mouth at the chamber bottom open end is denoted at 20, said chamber open end 20 being remote of the chamber closed top end.

The attachment, best shown in FIGURE 2, comprises guard means; that is, a special adaptation which when installed in the manner shown in FIGURE 1 constitutes a partial closure for the lower half-portion of the mouth or open end 20. This guard means is horizontally elongated in double length to fit within the encompassing confines of the open end of the hood. It can be seen in the drawing that the degree of extension of the guard means into the hood chamber is minimal, such that the upper surface of the guard proper is located nearer to the chamber open mouth bottom end i.e. hood open mouth, than to the chamber closed top end. It is readily applicable and removable and is attached and retained in an upstanding guard-forming position by novel means. Although this guard means may be of a form and construction other than that precisely shown its capability of serviceable use has been found to be adequate and satisfactory when constructed in the manner shown in FIGURE 2. As is evident from FIGURE 2, the guard is fashioned from a single length of stout wire which is bent upon itself to define an outer or main frame 22 and a companion inner oriented auxiliary frame 24. The frames are interconnected and associated in a manner to provide a substantially flat elongated openwork frame structure. The Wire is bent in such a manner as to define a loop-like member 26 at the left and a corresponding loop-like member 28 at the right. Adjacent end portions of the loop-like members are bent into elongated U-shaped form as at 30' and 32, respectively, and these U-bends are linked together in the manner shown. The bottom portion of this main frame comprises an elongated linerally straight member 34. One end portion of the wire is bent as at 36 and again laterally bent as at 38, is formed into a coil or eye 40' surrounding the frame member 34 as at 42 and the free or terminal end is fashioned into a prong-like anchoring finger 44. The other end portion of the wire is likewise bent as at 46 and 48, is fashioned into an eye or coil 50 embracing the frame member 34 and then terminates in a prong-like anchoring finger 52. These fingers 44 and 52 are generally straight and parallel with each other and inasmuch as the wire which is used is resilient it will be evident that the fingers can be adjusted toward and from each other as denoted at A and B so that the terminal end portions can be removably plugged and anchored in a selected one of the air ports 18 as shown clearly in FIGURE 3. This is to say the anchoring and retaining fingers can be sprung and adjustably held in place whereby the overall openwork guard can assume the applicable and removable position shown in FIGURE 1. The wire stock employed in fashioning the overall frame or guard is non-corrodible and otherwise such that it can be placed with Combs, brushes, implements and accessories in the usually employed sterilizer (not shown).

It will be evident from FIGURES l to 3 that the guard can be installed simply by plugging the prongs or fingers 44 and 52 into selected ports 18. When it is in place it converts the hollow chamber or space of the hood into an efiicient and practical holder for combs, brushes, implements and accessories as suggested in phantom-lines in FIGURE 1 whereby the same can be subjected to drying before being stored away in the aforementioned sterilizer.

The hood and other parts shown in FIGURE 4 are the same as those illustrated in FIGURE 1 and the same reference numbers are employed. In this form of the invention the guard means is made from launderable, component parts and the guard or shield proper comprises a flexible rectangular (or approximately so) shield or panel 54 having an upper edge 56, a lower longitudinal edge 58 and transverse end portions 60 and 62. This panel is made from cloth or suitable textile material as suggested at 64 and the retaining means comprises a simple harness. Strap ends 66 and 68 are attached to one transverse end and joined to a single assembling and fastening strap 70 having its free end 72 provided with a snap fastener or the like 74. A similar U-shaped member is provided at the other end and comprises strap ends 76 and 78 joined with a single strap 80 having a free end portion 82 provided with a snap fastener 34 separably connectable with the snap fastener 74. These are dual-type snap fasteners and can be joined with each other in interconnecting relationship.

When the device is applied the shield covers the lower half-portion of the mouth and straps embrace the hood and the end portions are separably connected together.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the length to fit within the confines of the hollow chamber of the open-front mouth-portion of said hood, said guard comprising a main frame embodying resilient loop-like end members, and an auxiliary frame oriented and located within the marginal confines of the main frame and having yieldable attaching and retaining fingers, the latter slidingly fastened on a coordinated component part of said main frame.

2. The structure according to claim 1, and wherein said component part is longitudinally straight, and portions of said fingers being coiled around and slidingly attached to said straight component part.

3. The structure according to claim 1, and wherein said guard is of a vertical width and height that, when in use, it amply spans only the lower half-portion of the hollow chamber portion of the hood, whereby the upper halfportion is unblocked and consequently unobstructedly open, to permit the user to insert and remove hair brushes, combs and the like unhampered.

4. In combination, a hair drying hood having a hollow drying chamber, said drying chamber including a closed top end and an unobstructed open mouth bottom end, and a readily applicable and removable attachment embodying implement and accessory confining guard means spanning the lower half-portion only of said drying chamber mouth, said guard means embodying resilient adjustable anchoring and retaining members which are connectible with structural means presently existing within the inner confines of said hood.

5. The structure of claim 4 wherein the retaining means of the guard members comprise longitudinally spaced finger-like prongs capable of being removably plugged into air ports present in the ported liner of said hood.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,705,841 4/1955 Piazza 34- 91 2,721,395 10/1955 Walker 34 90 2,846,777 8/1958 Collins 34 90 3,006,078 10/1961 Parkeretal 34 202 FREDERICK L. MATTESON, JR., Primary Examiner.

C. R. REMKE, H. B. RAMEY, Assistant Examiners. 

1. AN ATTACHMENT FOR A HOLLOW OPEN FRONT HAIR DRYING HOOD COMPRISING AN ELONGATED GENERALLY FLAT GUARD OF A LENGTH TO FIT WITHIN THE CONFINES OF THE HOLLOW CHAMBER OF THE OPEN-FRONT MOUTH-PORTION OF SAID HOOD, SAID GUARD COMPRISING A MAIN FRAME EMBODYING RESILIENT LOOP-LIKE END MEMBERS, AND AN AUXILIARY FRAME ORIENTED AND LOCATED WITHIN THE MARGINAL CONFINES OF THE MAIN FRAME AND HAVING YIELDABLE ATTACHING AND RETAINING FINGERS, THE LATTER SLIDINGLY FASTENED ON A COORDINATED COMPONENT PART OF SAID MAIN FRAME. 